This Game Is Too Realistic

Chapter 762.1: Turing Point Of The Southern Front

Zhang Ruowen never imagined that, during the mere 5 minutes their sonar system was disabled, 10 Emperor Crabs would crawl onto the destroyer’s deck.

The Reef might have possessed formidable firepower, but its 150mm naval gun could hardly fire upon its own ship.

The same applied to its point-defense systems and torpedo launchers. Against the “Emperor Crabs” standing directly on the deck, they were completely useless.

Looking at the 20mm cannon barrel aimed straight at the bridge, Zhang Ruowen knew the battle was already lost. Rather than continue a meaningless resistance, he led the officers and sailors aboard the ship in surrender.

They would be transported to a prison on Peace Island, where they would await judgment under the law.

Watching the Southern Sea New Alliance sailors board the deck to disarm them, Zhang Ruowen remained silent for a moment before turning toward the enormous crab standing nearby. “May I ask you a question?”

Having captured such a massive vessel, Midnight Pubg was in an exceptionally good mood and readily replied, “Go ahead.”

Zhang Ruowen quickly asked, “How did you approach us in such a short time?”

He was familiar with the New Alliance’s Emperor Crab. The North Island Federation had conducted detailed studies of the New Alliance’s equipment and had even developed adhesive bombs specifically designed to counter individuals in exoframes in response to the New Alliance’s combat-diver tactics.

As far as he knew, the New Alliance’s Emperor Crab possessed maneuverability but lacked cruising speed. Underwater, it moved even slower than those Mutant Humans could swim.

The surrounding sea was immensely broad. If they had been lying in ambush directly beneath the ship from the very beginning, that would have been far too coincidental. Moreover, at such close range, no matter how well they concealed themselves, the sonar would still have detected them.

There was only one possibility. They had remained silent beforehand in an area where sonar identification was less precise, then rapidly closed in on the Reef after the EMP strike.

Yet at their speed, that should have been absolutely impossible.

Zhang Ruowen could not make sense of it no matter how much he thought.

Midnight Pubg merely laughed. “What’s so difficult about that? Just build a giant underwater propulsion unit and hold onto it while it pulls you along.”

They had encountered a similar problem during their previous battle against the Mutant Humans outside Coral City. Because the Emperor Crab’s underwater cruising speed was too slow, once separated from its vessel, it could only wait for friendly forces to recover it. It could neither withdraw from the battlefield on its own nor rapidly redeploy.

Installing a large propeller directly onto the Emperor Crab would have made the entire suit far too bulky.

The New Alliance Logistics Division had therefore issued a tender based on player requirements, seeking a solution from the industrial sector.

Goblin Technology ultimately won the contract. Mosquito solved the problem for a mere 10,000 Silver.

The solution was simple. They combined a large battery with a propeller and shaped the whole thing like an oversized firecracker. The Emperor Crab only needed to hold onto it to move. During combat, they could simply toss it aside. Once the fighting ended, they would retrieve it and use it to relocate.

It was both economical and practical.

After hearing the New Alliance’s solution, Zhang Ruowen froze for a moment before a bitter smile appeared on his face.

“So that’s how you did it.”

It truly was not a complicated solution. He had simply overthought the problem. It wasn’t unjust for him to lose the battle.

“Come to think of it, I also have a question for you,” Midnight Pubg suddenly said, looking at the captain who was nursing a bitter smile on his face.

Zhang Ruowen sighed, “What is it?”

Midnight Pubg glanced in the direction of Sandbar Island. Black smoke slowly drifted above the coastline, marking the places struck by the 150mm naval bombardment. However, upon closer inspection, the shells had not landed within the urban district. Instead, they had struck beside it.

“Did you deliberately miss?”

Zhang Ruowen remained silent for a long time before slowly answering. “The people living there are still my compatriots.”

...

While the entire crew of the Reef was surrendering, the fighting on Sandbar Island was also nearing its conclusion.

The final 100 or so Mutant Humans wearing specialized exoskeletons had been trapped inside a paper mill on the outskirts. They used the walls of the factory as cover, but the balance between attacker and defender had already reversed.

Fear finally began to show uncontrollably upon their vicious faces.

A Mutant Human missing one ear approached its commander, panting heavily. “Boss, these humans are hard to deal with.”

The one it addressed as boss wore an equally grim expression. Thick armor covered its chest, smeared with shredded flesh and blood. Some of it belonged to the Mutant Human itself. The rest had been left behind by the humans.

Before they boarded the landing ship, Chalas had told them that only a group of weak and useless trash lived on the island. Once they landed, they could do whatever they wanted for as long as they pleased.

However, after reaching the beach, the Mutant Human discovered that matters were nowhere near as simple as it had imagined. The people there were every bit as formidable as those they had encountered in the northern mountains! In fact, they were even more vicious, ruthless, and disciplined!

Only three humans were needed to seal off an entire street. Three small squads could surround a full Mutant Human unit that was 100-man strong.

Meanwhile, the Mutant Humans who had come ashore had run through the streets like headless flies. They had found neither human females nor any of the worthless weaklings Chalas had promised them.

“What do we do now?” one mutant muttered, unmistakable terror filling its voice.

As the fearful atmosphere spread through the silence, a black metal can roughly the size of a beverage can was tossed through the window and clattered across the floor. Before the Mutant Humans could react, the can erupted in a brilliant red flame, spewing dazzling sparks and thick white smoke.

Terrifying memories surged through their minds in an instant, and horror filled their twisted faces.

White phosphorus!

It was as though they had returned to the caves of Ten Peaks Mountain!

These people... They’re from the New Alliance!

At the very moment they realized who they were fighting, the crackling roar of gunfire and even more incendiary grenades surged into the building alongside the erupting flames!

The battle ignited in an instant! A dense storm of explosive rounds struck the Mutant Humans and the surrounding factory floor like pouring rain, unleashing a bloody tempest.

“ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!”

A Mutant Human captain bellowed and fired a rifle grenade toward the entrance. Smoke and shrapnel from the explosion swallowed the figure who had charged through the doorway.

A look of wild delight appeared on the Mutant Human’s face, but before it could howl in triumph, a tower-like figure strode through the smoke and entered the factory. The man wore a streamlined exoframe and carried an enormous cannon gun in his hands. A chilling and murderous aura radiated from every part of his body.

Even through the helmet visor, the Mutant Human could feel the threat of death transmitted through the man’s gaze. It opened its mouth, attempting to roar away the fear in its chest. However, the instant its jaws parted, an explosive shell plunged straight into its cheek.

Bang!

Shattered flesh and brain matter were sprayed across the wall by the metal jet that pierced its skull.

After killing it effortlessly, the armored figure immediately aimed at his next target and pulled the trigger, covering his teammates as they advanced into the factory.

“Their heads don’t grow back. These aren’t the mutated infected from Broken Blade Mountain. They’re the standard variety.”

“Whatever they are, just kill them!”

“Clear the factory. Leave none alive.”

“Copy that!”

Wearing his Dragon Cavalry exoframe, Old White personally led 11 players clad in their Ethereal exoframes into the paper mill.

The blasts of Howlers echoed throughout the factory, accompanied by the roars and agonized screams of the Mutant Humans.

The battle was 12 vs 100, but there was never any suspense in the battle. It was a completely one-sided slaughter.

The New Alliance had never taken Mutant Humans prisoner, and therefore showed no restraint whatsoever.

After one final, desperate resistance, the last Mutant Human unit was completely annihilated.

Once the fighting on the island ended, Old White also received good news from Midnight Pubg. Sailors from Peace Island had already boarded the Reef destroyer by speedboat.

After searching the cached data within its communications terminals, the Peace Island fleet successfully pinpointed the location of the North Island fleet. It transmitted the coordinates to the New Alliance Air Force while simultaneously deploying all three attack submarines.

The two Thunderbolt fighters that had only recently landed at French Fry Harbor took off once again. They flew toward the coordinates supplied by the Peace Island fleet, preparing to provide laser guidance for Ring Island’s land-based missile launchers.

Unfortunately, the opposing fleet had not remained foolishly in one place while waiting for the New Alliance’s aircraft and submarines to arrive. It had relocated long ago.

Considering that the old coordinates might now serve as a new decoy, General Li Minghui ultimately abandoned the pursuit after communicating with the New Alliance’s frontline command and recalled all three submarines. After all, those three submarines were the Southern Sea New Alliance’s greatest trump card. They could not afford the slightest mistake.

Furthermore, the gains from the battle were already plentiful enough. In addition to the landing ship converted from a cargo vessel, they had successfully captured a Federation destroyer! There was no need to greedily pursue a little more victory.

The North Island Federation now possessed only four vessels, one battleship, one cruiser, and two destroyers.

The Southern Sea New Alliance, meanwhile, possessed one cruiser and three destroyers, also totaling four surface vessels, along with three attack submarines.

In addition, the submarine carrier under construction was nearing completion, and there was the Meissner effect electromagnetic-cannon countermeasure soon to be installed on the cruiser.

Before long, they would be able to plan one final decisive battle and drive Chalas and his lackeys completely out of the Southern Seas. There was no need to exhaust their strength now.

After the battle ended completely, Ample Time led a group to the center of the island to reassure the anxious residents, while Old White took the brothers of the corps to clear the battlefield.

10 players had died during the entire battle. 2 had been seriously wounded, and 20 had suffered minor injuries. The equipment losses included 14 Type-5 exoskeletons and 4 Type-6 exoskeletons. As for exoframes, they merely suffered a few minor dents and scratches. It did not even require repairs.

Objectively speaking, the exoskeletons designed by the North Island Federation for the Mutant Humans were fairly durable. At the very least, they were far superior to the “I reckon this’ll work” armor the Mutant Humans had hammered together themselves.

“Holy crap! This has to be at least a 20mm caliber gun.” Peepo picked up a rifle from the ground that stood more than half as tall as a person. Measuring the barrel’s diameter with his thumb, he could not help clicking his tongue.

The weapon retained the general form of an assault rifle, and its receiver used a classic design. It had even been manufactured from stamped components. However, the weapon could clearly no longer be considered a mere gun. In terms of caliber and destructive power alone, it had already entered the category of a cannon. ree

Kidney Warrior caught the big gun Peepo handed him and examined it for a moment before leaning it against a nearby wall with the other captured weapons. “Other than the Mutant Humans themselves, I doubt anyone except those strength type monsters can use this thing.”

“What interests me more is their exoskeletons!” Crouched beside a mutant corpse, Dog Good Names stared at the steel plate hanging from its body.

Armor plating roughly two fingers thick formed its breastplate. Faced with explosive bolts fired from a bolter, the Mutant Human had actually endured four direct hits! The other dented areas that had not been penetrated appeared to have been struck by rifle and machine-gun rounds.

Clearly, the overwhelming majority of bullets that struck the Mutant Humans’ chests had been stopped.

That was also why they had managed to charge through the machine-gun fire on the beach and enter the urban district. Had they been aquatic Mutant Humans or soldiers from the Xilande Empire’s Gray Wolf Army, they probably would have been wiped out before even reaching the shore.

In truth, the battle’s outcome had already been decided from the moment the New Alliance’s transport aircraft landed first and completed their deployment.

Along the coastline, 40 Emperor Crabs hidden around the shore crawled onto land one after another.

Midnight Pubg climbed out and sauntered toward the urban district. The sight of his entire body covered in welded steel plates startled the security guards helping to clear the battlefield. For a moment, they thought the Mutant Humans had returned.

Actually, that fellow looked far more outrageous than any Mutant Human.